


Better Than Dying

by mmorgan317



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Teeny bit of fluff, Winn Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-17
Updated: 2020-04-17
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:28:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23707654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mmorgan317/pseuds/mmorgan317
Summary: While saving Winn from an attack, Kara forgets to be gentle and ends up hurting him. Winn whump. Kara angst.
Comments: 16
Kudos: 57





	Better Than Dying

**Author's Note:**

> Rating: PG-13
> 
> Disclaimer: I own nothing of Supergirl and am doing this for fun
> 
> Author’s Note(s): Okay, I’m officially addicted to Winn Schott and need him whumped as much as possible. Here’s my first (and hopefully not only) contribution to that cause. 
> 
> 2) I apologize if anyone is OOC.. I haven’t watched nearly enough Supergirl to get a good handle on all of them. I do promise to do my best, though.
> 
> 3) There will definitely be inconsistencies between this fic and the show. I didn’t realize until after I’d read it that they had medical at the DEO, so Winn goes to an actual hospital. And there are also slight inaccuracies with the medical process in general. Hopefully they aren’t glaringly obvious.

Kara couldn’t understand it. She’d protected him from danger so many times she’d officially lost count and she’d always been careful not to hurt him in the process, being far gentler than she probably needed to be to ensure that didn’t happen. So why had today been different? 

Their latest bad guy had been using civilians as targets in hopes of distracting Kara from the fact that he also had a team breaking into the National City Bank’s vault. For the most part, it hadn’t worked because she’d known that Winn and James, both of who had been in the area when the attack had started, would get the people out while she dealt with the maniac flinging debris around. But when a chunk of concrete the size of a car had been flown at Winn, Kara hadn’t been able to think of anything else besides saving him. She should have grabbed the concrete, but instead she’d covered Winn, tackling him to the ground, then using her hand to keep him there. 

It hadn’t been until he’d quietly whimpered, her name coming out in a strained tone, that she’d suspected something was wrong. But though she’d heard the sound, she had been on too high an alert to register it. She’d kept her hand near his shoulder to hold him still while she’d scanned the skies for signs of more debris. His second whimper, this one almost a keening groan, finally caught her full attention. Knowing that everyone was safe for the moment, Kara had finally looked down at her friend. 

Kara had been appalled to see tears streaming out of his eyes and pain in his face. She’d immediately begun asking him what was wrong, and if he was alright, while her hands moved from holding him down to his head and neck, checking to make sure nothing obvious was amiss. She’d calmed a little when he’d said that he’d hurt his shoulder in the fall, nothing more, but that had only lasted until he’d cried out when he tried to sit up. He’d talked her down from Supergirl-ing him to the hospital, though barely, instead asking her to help him over to one of the approaching ambulances. She’d met him at the hospital, though, changing out of her Supergirl costume on her way, before following him as far as she’d been able, then had stood at the doors, using her super hearing to spy as the ER staff had attended him. 

When she’d heard them wonder at the handprint over Winn’s collarbone, Kara had instantly understood what had happened and had felt sick. In her haste to protect him, she’d forgotten just how strong her grip was and she’d ended up hurting him instead. She’d continued listening to everything that was being said until she’d heard he was being taken for an x-ray, then she’d gone to the waiting room to pace, wonder, and berate herself. 

“Hey,” James, who had followed both her and Winn here, said, forcing her out of her head and back to the here and now. He stood in front of her, not touching her, but blocking her path nonetheless. When she looked at him, he smiled his comforting smile. “He’s going to be fine.” 

“I know,” she said, her tone showing how ridiculous she thought his assurance. She crossed her arms over her chest in an effort to comfort herself. “I just, I can’t believe I hurt him,” she said, lowering her voice so no one overheard them. “I’m usually so careful, and yet, the one time I really should have been, I wasn’t. And now, Winn’s needing x-rays to see how badly he’s injured, and it’s because of me.” 

James pulled her into a hug which Kara hadn’t realized she’d needed until right this moment. His steady heartbeat comforted her, calmed her, and his embrace, though nowhere near as strong as hers, was firm, providing her with a sense of stability. “Winn isn’t gonna blame you for this,” he whispered into her ear, the sound of it rumbling through his chest. “In fact, I suspect he’d prefer this to being killed by flying debris.” 

“That doesn’t change the fact that this shouldn’t have happened at all,” Kara argued, unable to let it go. She hated seeing anyone in pain, but the fact that it was  _ Winn _ , her best friend, and that  _ she  _ was the cause, made it so much worse. If anyone else had hurt him the way she had, she would have been off hunting for them, either to take to them jail for assault if they were a criminal, or to give them a stern talking to if they were a friend, but since she couldn’t do that, she had to settle for berating herself instead. “I shouldn’t have gotten so wrapped up-”

“You gotta stop beating yourself up about this,” James interrupted, cutting off anything else she might have said. “You made a mistake, but he’s alive, and that’s thanks to you.” He sighed. “Why don’t you come sit down? Pacing isn’t going to do Winn any good, and I’m actually pretty certain you’re going to wear out the floor if you continue.” 

Kara knew he was right, nothing she said or did could change what had happened, and at least Winn wasn’t dead, but even so, she couldn’t help but continue to worry. What if something was wrong with her, and that’s why she forgot? 

“I honestly don’t think I can sit and wait right now,” she admitted, a little too keyed up for anything slower than pacing. “Thanks though.” 

James knew when to push and when to let go, especially when it came to her, so he acquiesced with a nod and backed off. But Kara couldn’t get the idea that something was wrong with her out of her mind. While it wasn’t the only plausible reason for what happened, it was certainly the most worrying. With all the different aliens coming to Earth, it would have been far too easy for one of them to do something to her.

Deciding it couldn’t hurt to check, Kara pulled her phone out and called Alex. 

_ “How’s Winn?” _

Kara’s brows furrowed. “They think he’s got a broken collar bone and maybe a couple of broken ribs. H-how-?” 

_ “He works for the DEO, Kara.We keep track of our employees.”  _ Her sister’s voice implied the duh that she wouldn’t say, making Kara roll her eyes.  _ “Did Radius get him with some debris?”  _

“No, but not for lack of trying.”

_ “Then?” _

“It was me,” Kara admitted. “I did it. I pinned him down while I protected him, but I guess I wasn’t thinking, and I used too much strength, and I hurt him. Alex, he was in so much pain, and I did that, I did that to him, and-” 

_ “Hey, stop,”  _ Alex interrupted, her tone firm yet comforting.  _ “Breathe.”  _ She waited until Kara had done what she’d suggested, then she said,  _ “Tell me what happened.”  _

Kara did, leaving nothing out. She paused once when she heard Winn hiss in pain via her super hearing, but otherwise, everything just tumbled out. By the end, she was just as worked up as she was before James had left to go sit down. “Do you think something’s wrong with me?” she asked with fear in her voice. 

_ “Honestly, Kara, I think that, like most people on Earth, you made a mistake.”  _

“Yes, but I’m not like most people on Earth,” Kara argued, refusing to let herself off that easy. 

_ “You may be Supergirl, Kara, but you aren’t perfect.”  _ That was fair, but as a superhero, you had to be perfect because otherwise people could die.  _ “Look, we have things covered here for now. Why don’t you help Winn get home and get him settled? Maybe by then we’ll have Radius’ whereabouts and you can take some frustration out on him.”  _

“Yeah, okay,” Kara agreed. “Thanks Alex.” 

_ “Of course.”  _

She hung up without another word, leaving Kara feeling slightly better. While she waited for Winn’s release, she continued to listen to what was happening in his room. From his slight gasps or brief hisses, it was obvious he was still hurting, in spite of the fact that she knew they had given him something for the pain shortly after he’d arrived. She stopped pacing as she focused more, listening as the nurse apologized every time Winn expressed discomfort, then advised him to stay still and let her do the work as she put his arm in a sling. Man, Winn was gonna  _ hate  _ not being able to use both hands.

“Are they almost done?” 

James’ voice so close to her distracted her. “What?” she asked, brows wrinkling in confusion. 

He nodded back towards the triage area. “You were listening to them. Are they almost done?” 

“Yeah, they got the x-rays back and are now getting him situated with a sling.” Kara pushed her fake glasses back up the bridge of her nose. “He’s got a break to the middle of his collar bone on the left side, as well as a couple of broken ribs, also on the left side.” She shook her head, frustrated with herself. “I don’t even know how I managed to break his ribs,” she admitted. 

“How do you know it was even you that did it?” James countered. “Not everything is your fault, Kara.”

“This is,” Kara argued back.

“Well, he’s coming this way, why don’t you ask him?” James said, his attention no longer focused on her. 

Whether or not he meant to do it, James’ warning gave Kara time to school her expression into something resembling her normal cheerfulness. There was no way she was going to let Winn see just how upset she was about everything, because then he’d worry about her and he didn’t need that right now. Turning around before what she was really feeling showed on her face, Kara smiled at her friend. 

“Hey,” she said, doing her best not to react as he gingerly walked towards them with a black sling securing his arm across his torso, thus keeping his shoulder from moving. How that worked with his injured side, Kara couldn’t imagine. “You okay?” 

Winn didn’t answer at first, his eyes narrowing slightly as he stared at her. He looked like a mild wind could blow him over, but his voice was strong as he asked, “You listened in, didn’t you?” 

“Yep,” James answered, selling her out. “I’m pretty sure it was either that or she was going to storm in and watch them all like a hawk.” 

Winn’s smile looked tired, but at least it was there. Kara, meanwhile, rolled her eyes. “I was not that bad,” she objected, though she knew that James had hit the nail on the head. If Winn had cried out in pain one more time, there wouldn’t have been anything that could have stopped her from being with him, ridiculous though it would have been. 

“Yes you were,” James answered back with laughter in his voice. Keeping his focus on Winn, he asked, “You ready to get out of here?”

“Most definitely,” Winn answered, sounding more like himself. 

“Good,” Kara said, fighting the urge to link her arm with his available one and pull him along. As much as she wanted to touch him like she normally would have, she was too afraid of accidentally hurting him to do it. “I was thinking of doing a sci-fi marathon. First we start with Star Wars, and then, if we’re not all conked out, we could move onto Battlestar Galactica.”

“Wait, don’t we still have to try to find Radius,” Winn asked as they exited the hospital. 

Kara soaked in the energy from the blazing sun, letting it replenish her as though she were a battery that needed charging. Winn and James both raised their hands to shield their eyes, but Kara ignored it in favor of answering her friend. “Alex said she and J’onn would do that. She told me to get you home and get you settled and that she’d let us know when she found something.” 

“We all know we’d find him quicker if I was the one doing the search,” Winn argued as they headed for James’ car. 

“Dude, you have one hand,” James pointed out, “even as good as you are, I’m pretty sure the guys at the DEO could do it just as quickly.” 

“What? No,” Winn said, refusing to give in. “I refuse to accept that. Not that I don’t think those guys are good, because they are, but I can do it better. And I have two hands…as long as you help me get this thing off.” 

“No,” Kara answered before James could agree. “Winn, you are keeping that sling on and following the doctor’s orders, or so help me, I will,” she paused, unable to decide how to finish her threat. Normally she would have suggested forcing him to do it, but given the fact that she was the reason he had to follow orders in the first place, she didn’t feel comfortable saying that. “I don’t know what I’ll do, but you will not like it.” 

A pothole stopped either of her friends from saying anything for a minute, with Winn hissed as he jostled and James, looking in the rearview at him. “Sorry, man,” James said with a wince. “Didn’t see it.” 

“You wanna make it up to me, you can take us to the DEO,” Winn breathily answered, a pained smile on his face. 

“No way,” Kara objected, now focusing on James. She honestly wasn’t sure if he would give in or not, but she did know that Winn had the ability of getting what he wanted too much of the time. She suspected it had to do with the sad look he’d get in his beautiful hazel eyes, though she couldn’t prove it. When James took a turn that would take them to the DEO, Kara sighed in frustration. “Seriously? He needs to rest, James, not work.” 

“How much rest do you think he’s going to get if he sits at home, itching to get Radius?” 

“Uh, guys, you know I’m right here, right?” Winn asked, using his right hand to point at himself. “And that I am, not only capable of taking care of myself, but that I’m also able to make my own decisions. You-you guys get that, right?” 

“Like you took care of yourself when Radius targeted you?” James countered, a hint of laughter in his voice. 

“Okay, that’s an unfair comparison,” Winn objected. “I was busy making sure a little boy and his father got out of the way, so I didn’t see it coming.” Another bump in the road made him pause, a groan rumbling in his throat. “Besides,” he added when he could speak, “Kara had my back.” 

_ Yeah, and I broke three bones in the process,  _ Kara silently pouted. Since she couldn’t think of anything more to say in response, she chose to remain silent during the rest of the ride. As though sensing it best to remain quiet as well, the two men did just that, with James turning the radio on for background noise. 

It wasn’t until they’d pulled into the secure underground parking that a sudden thought struck Kara. “We didn’t fill your prescription!” she exclaimed, earning her wrinkled brows of confusion from her two friends. Kara cleared her throat and pivoted to focus on Winn. “We forgot to fill the prescription they gave you for pain medication.” 

“You know I love you, Kara, but you have got to stop spying on your friends,” he teased, ignoring her point. “It’s both endearing and creepy.” 

“Stop trying to distract me,” she said, knowing full-well that was exactly what he was trying to do. “You’re going to need those before long.” 

“She’s right, bro,” James supported, looking in his rearview. 

“I’ll be fine,” Winn assured, his expression calling James a traitor for siding with Kara. 

As much as she wanted to, Kara didn’t argue with him. She knew that tone of voice; he was done discussing this. Fine. She’d just slip out and do it while he was busy. That was assuming he still had the prescription on him. For a second she was tempted to x-ray vision him, but then she stopped herself. Not long after she’d discovered her abilities, Kara had decided she wouldn’t do anything that could be seen as invasive, and scanning a friend with x-ray vision when she could simply ask him was definitely invasive. 

Changing back into the Supergirl costume, Kara met her two friends on the staircase. Until her sister approached them with her arms crossed and her face pinched in anger, it hadn’t occurred to her that Alex wouldn’t be pleased to see them. 

“What are you doing here?” Alex asked, her entire focus on Winn. 

Winn looked first at Kara and then James before he answered, “I’m helping you find Radius.” 

“No, you need to go home and get some rest. We can handle finding Radius without you.” 

Alex’s tone was firm, her body language unyielding. Normally, Winn would back down from that, but one look told Kara he had no intention of relenting this time. “Yes, but you would find him faster with me.”

“Winn-”

“Do you want to catch him before he attacks again or not?” Winn interrupted, already heading to his work station.

“You know we do,” Alex unwillingly admitted, a sigh in her voice. 

“Then let me do my job.” 

He was slow in sitting down, leaning against the desk for support far more than Kara liked. She waited until he’d gingerly settled into his chair, letting out a sigh that Kara knew none but her could hear, before she’d approached him. 

“Did you bring the prescription slip with you?” she asked, keeping her voice somewhat low, though she wasn’t sure why. 

Winn looked up at her with surprise, quickly followed by pain when he moved. Already able to tell that he was going to say he was fine, Kara crossed her arms over her chest and gave him her best ‘don’t try it’ look. It took a minute or two, but he eventually sighed, reaching into where his left arm rested, then pulled it out. 

“Thank you,” she said after he’d handed it over. “I’m going to go get this refilled, and then we’re leaving. If you haven’t located Radius before then, the rest of IT will have to finish without you.” 

She didn’t give him time to argue because if she did, she knew he’d win. So, instead, she turned on her heel and flew off. She wanted to get him home and resting sooner rather than later, and if that meant she Supergirl-ed her way through traffic then so be it. 

  
  


**oOo**

  
  


Winn sighed when he heard Kara fly off. If she wasn’t going to take regular methods to get to the pharmacy, then he had less time to work than he thought. He was torn about the pain meds. On the one hand, he knew that everyone else had dealt with injuries far worse than what he had and there was therefore no reason for him to be treated so gently; okay, sure, a few of them healed  _ a lot  _ faster than he did, too, but that was beside the point. On the other hand, his shoulder was killing him and it was getting harder to pretend it wasn’t. Technically, he didn’t have to hide how much he was hurting, but since he really didn’t want Kara to feel guiltier than she already did, he did his best to appear fine. 

Knowing Kara as well as he did, Winn hadn’t been surprised to learn that she’d been listening in during his examination. He’d hoped that she wouldn’t, but it had been a small hope at best. She tended to go into overprotective drive when someone she cared about was injured, which definitely included spying on conversations she wasn’t a part of. As much as he probably should, Winn didn’t mind. He actually found it a bit comforting, knowing that she would always have his back, even when she’s not supposed to. 

“Here.” Winn jumped upon hearing Alex’s voice, the action bringing such acute pain that it took everything he had not to make a sound. Alex’s face wrinkled in a sympathetic wince. “Sorry,” she said, thrusting out an activated instant ice pack towards him. “I thought you could use this.” 

“Thanks," he said, taking it from her and placing it against his collar bone. He took a moment to try and figure out how to get it to balance so that he wouldn’t have to hold it there before he gave up with a sigh. 

“Why are you here?” Alex asked him with exasperated confusion in her voice. “You and I both know that the techs can handle searching for Radius without you.” 

“Okay, one - ouch.”

“You know what I mean-”

“And two - it’s not just about Radius.” 

Alex crossed her arms over her chest. “Kara.” She sighed. “You do know that no matter what you do, she’s going to feel guilty for hurting you, right?” 

“Yeah, of course I know that.” Winn may not have grown up with Kara, but he knew her better than even she was probably aware of. “I’m just hoping that I can lessen it a little. Preferably before she drives all of us crazy.” 

“Good luck with that.” Alex reached out as though to tap him on the shoulder, then withdrew when she remembered he was injured. “I thought you were supposed to be working.” 

“I am.” She raised a disbelieving eyebrow at him. “I am,” he insisted, pointing at his computer screen. “I have an algorithm running, searching for the paths that Radius and his cronies took when they escaped. Once we have that, we can trace them to their hideout.” 

Alex’s brows furrowed. “When did you do that?” 

“While you went to get the ice pack, apparently. Thank you for that, by the way.” He shifted it to his side now that his collar was numb. “I really appreciate it.” 

“Of course,” she answered, her tone dismissing his gratitude. “Let me know when it comes up with something?” 

“Will do,” he assured, though he thought the chances of him still being around when that happened were small. He wouldn’t put it past Kara to physically force him to go home when she came back. 

Putting that thought aside, Winn focused on the results the algorithm was already producing. He’d deal with Kara when she got back, until then, he had work to do. 

  
  


**oOo**

  
  


Even with her flying, it took way longer to fill Winn’s prescription than Kara had thought it would. Not having to fill one in a very long time, she hadn’t remembered the wait for the pharmacist to get to it. Rather than push, she’d passed the time by trying to find Radius on her own, flying around the city and its outskirts for any sign of him. She’d come up empty, of course, but by the time she’d given in, the pharmacy had called her to say the prescription was ready, so she’d picked it up and headed back to the DEO. 

“Hey, how’d it go?” Alex greeted as she met Kara on the stairs. 

“Slow,” Kara answered with a hint of annoyance. “I forgot that they required an hour to fill it.”

“Yeah, it can suck,” Alex said. “Hey, before you take that to Winn, can I talk to you for a sec?” 

Kara’s brows furrowed in confusion, but she nodded, then followed her sister to the conference room. “What’s up?” she asked once Alex had closed the door behind them. 

“I know you feel guilty for hurting Winn,” Alex began as she leaned against the table and faced Kara, “but I think you should take the mother-hen instinct down a couple of notches.” 

“I am not being that bad,” Kara defended, crossing her arms over her chest. 

“Not yet,” Alex admitted. “But we both know that once you get Winn home, that would change. He’s already well aware of how you feel about all of it, and he’s pretending he isn’t hurting as much as he is because of it.” 

“That’s not because of me,” Kara argued. “He would be doing that even if I hadn’t been the cause.” 

“Would he, though?” Alex countered. “Remember the time he managed to trip himself up and ended up falling down the stairs? He’d ended up with a pulled muscle in his back and a twisted ankle; he’d stayed at work to help, since we still had a bad guy to catch, but he’d had no problem groaning or grumbling when he was hurting. The only times I can remember him pretending to be fine when he wasn’t was when we were over-worried about him. He doesn’t like to worry people. He never has.” 

“I don’t think he’s had much practice with having people care about him,” Kara said, the thought making her sad. 

Winn was the sweetest, most deserving person that Kara knew. When they’d first met, she’d assumed that he had dozens of friends, but it hadn’t taken her long to figure out that was not the case. She hadn’t been able to understand it until he’d started opening up to her. Beneath his almost puppy-dog exterior, was a scarred person who was worried about people being unaccepting of him and his secrets. She suspected that he’d tried trusting a few people in the past, but had been burned by them and so had stopped trying, choosing to keep to himself and his computer rather than trust again. 

“And overdoing it isn’t likely to help change that,” Alex answered, possibly ignoring the implications of Kara’s statement. She opened her mouth to say something more, but she stopped when her phone buzzed in her pocket. “It’s Winn,” she announced, her gaze glued to the screen. “He has a possible location for Radius.” 

Knowing that that meant she was about to do her Supergirl thing instead of taking Winn home, Kara sighed and followed her sister down to Winn’s workstation. 

Winn had a satellite view with several heat signatures inside a building pulled up on the main screen. Kara briefly glanced at it, her mind barely processing any of it as she did so, before she focused solely on her friend. She was annoyed, though not surprised, to see he had discarded the sling so he could use both hands to type. Where it had gone, she didn’t know, but she suspected she’d find it when she made him leave once she’d dealt with Radius. While he was using both hands to type, she noticed that he did try to use his left hand as little as possible, but still, there was a tenseness to him that showed how much pain he was in and she didn’t like it. 

“What do you got?” Alex asked, crossing her arms over her chest as she stared at the screen. 

“From what we can tell, Radius and his buddies are hanging out in an abandoned lumber mill just outside of the city,” Winn answered, his fingers gliding over the keys with efficiency. The view of the map zoomed in, giving them all a better view of the building and of the placement of the heat signatures. He hissed when he overstretched his left arm, drawing all attention to himself, which he ignored. “I can’t specifically tell what they have with them, if anything, so you’ll have to be going in blind, unfortunately, but judging from what they’ve been stealing, and the lack of chatter in the black market circuits, you shouldn’t be walking into anything you can’t handle.” 

“Okay,” Kara said, her gaze now focused on the screen. She wanted to say something more, but she honestly didn’t know what, so she said nothing as she prepared to head out to find Radius. 

“Be careful,” Alex said.

Kara smiled at her sister, then looked down at her friend who had slightly pivoted his chair so that he could look at her, his expression saying the same thing Alex had. “I’ll be fine,” she assured them both with a smile. She looked back at Alex and added, “Take care of him?” 

Winn’s answering sigh made them all smile. “‘He’ will be fine,” he assured, sounding annoyed. “You just take care of you.” 

Kara refrained from offering him physical reassurance and settled for smiling instead before she left to pack Radius and his friends up in a pretty bow for the DEO. 

  
  


**oOo**

  
  


By the time the case was finished and the bad guys were secured, Winn was more than ready to go home. In spite of the fact that Kara had left his medication on his desk, he’d chosen to ignore it and hadn’t taken it, a decision he was now regretting, though he wouldn’t ever admit it with Kara around. 

While Kara went to go debrief with J’onn, Alex pulled Winn upstairs for a cursory exam. “This is unnecessary, you know that right?” he asked as he gingerly settled onto the bed.

“So was coming to work when we told you to go home, yet here we are,” Alex answered as she set up the scanner. “Besides, I want to make sure you didn’t undo the ER’s work with your stubbornness.” 

Winn thought telling her that he hadn’t, but he knew better than to try. She wasn’t going to let him out of her sight until she was satisfied, and no amount of him trying to convince her was going to do that; she needed proof. So he relaxed against the pillows they’d set up for him and let her continue. 

“How’s Maggie?” he asked to fill the silence. 

As far as Winn knew, the two women hadn’t been in a relationship that long, but ever since they had gotten together Alex had been over the moon happy and he couldn’t be happier for the elder Danvers. Although she quite often scared the crap out of him, she was also growing on him. He liked seeing her happy and hoped it lasted. 

“She’s good,” Alex answered without looking up from the screen. Her brows furrowed in a manner similar to Kara’s did when she read something she didn’t like as she read the results, then she turned it off. “Well, it looks like you haven’t done any further damage while you were being an idiot,” she admonished, stepping away to grab the sling he’d abandoned earlier on. “But now that things are settling, you can do as you were told and go home and rest.” She paused to help him put the sling back on. “Where you will stay for the rest of the week.” 

“The rest of the week! Oh, come on!” Winn objected, shifting the sling so that his arm was putting less pressure on his broken ribs. “One night for rest is all that I need. One night, then I’ll be good as new.” 

“Yeah, well, no offense, but I don’t trust you when it comes to your own personal health, so you are going to do as you’re told, and stay home. And just to make sure that you do, someone will be with you at all times.” 

“What, like a babysitter?” Alex smiled, the expression far too sweet for what she was implying. “No,” he argued as he eased off the bed. “No. I don’t need babysitters. I can be trusted to get home, and stay home, on my own.”

“You couldn’t even be trusted to go home from the hospital,” Kara interjected from the doorway, her arms crossed over her chest. 

“That..was because we needed to find Radius,” Winn pointed out, refusing to give in. “Now that things are calm, I can actually hang out at home…for a day or two.” 

“Winn, you and I both know your injuries are going to take much longer than ‘a day or two’ to heal,” Kara argued, just as stubborn as ever. 

“There is no way I am staying home until I’m healed,” Winn announced. “And, I mean, come on, why is everyone overreacting? When Alex broke her wrist, no one demanded she stay home and rest for multiple days.” 

“I didn’t have two broken ribs to go along with the broken wrist, either,” Alex said, mirroring Kara’s stubborn stance. Winn opened his mouth to argue some more, but he was cut off by Alex who said, “No, enough. You are going to go home and rest, and you are going to be accompanied by someone to ensure you’re doing as you’re told. When you can breathe without pain, we can talk about you coming back to work. Got it?” 

Knowing enough to recognize defeat, Winn rolled his eyes. “Yeah. Okay. Fine.”

“Good,” Alex said with a pleased smile. “Now, since you didn’t bring your car, and Kara doesn’t drive, I’ll give you both a lift.” 

“Great,” Winn said sarcastically. Thankfully it wasn’t a long drive from here to his apartment; he didn’t know if he could take being stuck in a car with both of the Danvers sisters for very long. “I’ll go get my stuff.” 

“Oh no need,” Kara said with a smile. She rushed away then came right back, his work bag and the prescription bag in hand. “I’ve already got it.” 

Winn looked between the two sisters, each one wearing smiles that hinted at sadistic enjoyment of one kind or another. Alex waved a hand towards the door. “Shall we?” 

“Yeah, fine, let’s go,” Winn impatiently agreed. 

They formed a small triangle as they left the DEO, with Alex following behind Winn and Kara. Winn didn’t miss how distant Kara was being with him. Ever since he’d come out of the ER, she’d been careful not to be close enough to touch him. She’d come really close when she’d asked him for the prescription slip, but even then she’d somehow managed to ensure that she wouldn’t accidentally come into contact with him. Though she was walking on his uninjured side, she was far enough away that Alex could almost have fit in the space between them. 

The distance she was putting between them was hard for Winn. He didn’t doubt that she was doing it because she was afraid of hurting him again, but the fact of the matter was that the idea of the dynamics of their friendship changing into something far colder hurt more than any broken bones ever could. If he wasn’t in as much pain as he was, he would have nudged her, then made a joke about what she was doing. Instead, he decided to wait until they were alone to bring it up. 

They reached the car in no-time, he was sure, but to Winn it had felt like forever. His shoulder and side hadn’t stopped throbbing from the minute he’d left the ER, and the extra movement was only making the pain worse. The ice pack that Alex had brought had helped to dull it to a more manageable level, but it hadn’t killed it entirely. Breathing was a lesson in agony he didn’t need or want as fire seemed to spread from his side and shoulder with each inhale. He’d never admit it out loud, but a couple of days off would do him a lot of good.

“Hey, Kara, can you run back and grab a couple more ice packs?” Alex asked as she pulled out her keys and unlocked the car. “I meant to get them on our way out, but it totally slipped my mind.” 

Kara paused, her expression confused. “Are you trying to get rid of me for some reason?”

Winn, who was wondering the same thing, waited curiously for an answer. 

“Why would I want to do that?” Alex asked with a slight eye roll. “I thought it would be nice for Winn not to be in a lot of pain during the ride to your place, and you can get the ice packs quicker than I could.” 

“I’m fine, really,” Winn assured when Kara’s blue eyes focused on him. “We can just go.” Then what Alex said finally registered with him and he turned to Alex. “Wait, Kara’s place? I thought we were going to mine?” 

Alex’s brows furrowed. “Kara’s place is closer isn’t it?” 

“Nope,” Kara answered before she whooshed away, then came back, two ice packs in tow and her street clothes on. “Winn’s is closer. He’ll be more comfortable there, anyways.” 

“I’m surprised you didn’t know that, Danvers,” Winn teased as he got into the car. He ground his teeth together to prevent any sound of pain coming out, but he couldn’t stop the grimace. Kara’s gaze was sympathetic as she handed the ice packs to him before getting into the front passenger seat. “I mean, you have me microchipped like a stray puppy, shouldn’t you have tracked me to my apartment by now?” 

“That chip is for your own protection, not for us to spy on you,” Alex argued as she pulled out of the parking garage. “We don’t keep track of it, or you, unless something catches our attention.” 

“Like you going to the Emergency Room, for instance,” Kara added, pivoting slightly so she could see him better. 

“Yeah, about that, why didn’t you bring him back to the DEO?” Alex asked, her tone curious rather than admonishing. 

“It didn’t even occur to me,” Kara answered with distress creeping in her voice. “He was hurt, and all I wanted to do was get him help and the ambulances were already on-scene and so that’s where we headed.” 

Winn noticed how she left out the part about him asking her to let the paramedics take him. Like her, he hadn’t even thought about going to the DEO for medical care; the pain had been so all-encompassing at the time that he’d just wanted it to stop. Besides, the DEO’s medical facilities were better used for aliens and alien tech induced injuries, not for a guy with a few broken bones. 

“You’re lucky they didn’t do an MRI,” Alex said, turning into the parking lot for Winn’s building. “That tracker in you would have come out against your will.” 

“And on that cheery thought,” Winn said, not even wanting to  _ think  _ about that. “Thanks for the ride.”

“Of course. Let me know if you need anything, Kara.” 

It took a minute for Winn to realize that Alex was referring to Kara needing help with him. He scoffed and rolled his eyes, closing the car door behind him. “I am  _ not _ that bad of a patient,” he said once Kara had done the same and Alex had driven away. 

“Yeah you are,” Kara argued back with a laugh. For a minute, Winn thought she would loop her arm through his, but then she stopped herself, pushing her glasses back up her nose as she did so. 

“Why do you do that?” he asked, his voice soft while also allowing his curiosity to shine through. 

“Do what?” she asked as she pulled his keys out of his hand and unlocked his door. 

“Pull away from me.” 

While Kara closed and locked the door behind them, Winn headed for the sofa, holding his left arm as still as he could while he did so. Settling into the cushions, he closed his eyes and sighed, allowing the pain from his injuries to wash over him. 

“Here.” Winn cracked an eye open to find a glass of water and a couple of pills being held out to him. He took them without arguing, figuring it was finally time, then handed the glass back to his friend. “I’m not pulling away,” Kara said as she placed the glass onto the coffee table. She then joined him on the sofa, sitting as far away from him as the couch would allow. Winn looked at her, silently challenging her, and she laughed the same way she does when she’s caught in a lie. “What? I’m not.” 

“Yes you are,” he gently argued back. When Kara crossed her arms defensively, he switched course. “I, uh, I forgot to thank you, for saving my life.” 

“You don’t need to thank me for that,” she declined, looking down at her lap. 

“Yes, I do,” he assured. Reaching out, he ignored the slight flinch she gave as he grabbed her hand, and pulled it forward so both of their hands rested on the sofa space between them. “I know that saving people has become a daily thing for you, and I know that you don’t think you deserve thanks, but you do. I haven’t been as grateful as I probably should be, so, please, let me say thank you.” 

“Thank me for what? For breaking your ribs and collar bone?” Kara’s tone was almost petulant underneath the guilt. Her eyes briefly tracked to the injuries in question before she lowered her gaze once more. 

“Kara,” he said with sympathy. He smiled, the action easier now that the pain was lessened, and squeezed her hand. “I’ll happily take a couple broken bones over being dead any day of the week.” 

“I know,” she replied, withdrawing her hand from his and curling in on herself. “I’d prefer not to be the one to break them, though.” When she looked at him, her eyes shone with tears, one falling before she averted her gaze again. “I hate that I hurt you, Winn. I mean, you know me, I don’t like it when any of my friends get hurt, but this is so much worse because  _ I’m  _ the one who did it. Not some bad guy. Me.” 

Winn sighed. “How many times have you saved me?” Kara’s brows wrinkled in confusion, showing she didn’t understand his point. “Out of all those times,” he continued, not giving her time to try and answer, “how many times have you hurt me?” She paused again, clearly trying to figure out the answer. “Exactly,” he said when he recognized that she couldn’t think of a single instance. “Kara, this, today, was an accident, nothing more.” 

“But what if I do it again?” she countered, fear and pleading in her voice.

“Accidents happen, you know? I mean, I’m sure it’s become second nature for you to be careful with humans, but sometimes things happen and you forget, and you accidentally bruise us instead. It’s not your fault; we’re fragile creatures compared to you non-Earthlings.” Winn waited for a reply, but when he didn’t receive one, he sighed. “Look,” he said, briefly looking down at his lap before returning his gaze to her, “I understand that you’re afraid of hurting anyone, especially your friends, but I, for one, I’m not worried.” He reached out and tilted her chin, forcing her to look at him. “I trust you, Kara Zor-El. You should trust yourself too.” 

When a tear trickled down her cheek, he pulled her towards him. She resisted him at first, but when he pulled harder, she relented, falling onto his right shoulder with enough force that he winced. Laying his cheek on the top of her head, Winn pulled her closer. Her arms wrapped around him, her right remaining low around his side so she wouldn’t press against one of his broken ribs, then she sunk into him. 

“I’m so sorry, Winn,” she whispered, tears in her voice. 

“I know,” he said. He gave her a squeeze. “I’ll make you a deal.” She pulled away so she could look at him, her expression serious, focused. “You talk Alex into not having people babysit me, and into letting me out of my apartment after a couple of days, and I promise I won’t hold it against you. Deal?” 

Kara’s eyes narrowed, humor and warmth replacing the sadness and guilt. “No deal. We both know you need the time to rest and the only way you’re going to get it is if someone forces you to do it.” 

“Yeah, but five days? Don’t you think that’s a bit excessive?” 

She smiled at him. “Nope. But, I’ll see your deal and raise you, if you behave, take your medication, not overtax yourself too much, I’ll consider talking Alex into getting you paroled early.” 

Winn narrowed his eyes at her. “You drive a hard bargain, Danvers.” He held out his hand. “Deal.” 

Kara gently shook his hand, a broad smile on her face. “Good. Now, why don’t you go get some sleep? It’s been a long day; I’m sure you could use it.” 

“What are you gonna do?” he asked, wary of her answer. He wouldn’t put it past her to watch him while he slept and as much as he loved her, the idea freaked him out. 

“Order some takeout and watch movies,” she absently answered, heading to where he kept a multitude of takeout menus. “Do you need help getting ready for bed?” 

The idea of Kara helping undress him made him both want to giggle and throw up at the same time. He settled for chuckling. “No, thanks, I’ve got it.” 

“Okay, well, when you’re ready, I’ll help you put the sling back on.” 

“You mean I’ve got to wear this thing to bed?” he whined as he slipped it off. 

“Yes! Because if you don’t, you’ll move your arm, which will hurt, and you won’t get any rest. So, yes, the sling stays on.” 

Rolling his eyes, Winn stiffly unbuttoned his shirt then gently slid it off. The handprints over his collar bone and side had darkened since he’d left the ER, going from being somewhat noticeable to ugly-looking. A part of him still couldn’t believe that it was Kara’s handprint. Ever since he’d known her she’d been so careful with humans. What had set her off this time, he didn’t know, but in the end it didn’t really matter because he certainly didn’t blame her and he could never be afraid of her.

A quick intake of breath had his head snapping up to find Kara staring at him with horror on her face. Of all the expressions he’d ever dreamed of seeing as she stared at his naked chest, horror never made the list. Her eyes moved from his side to his shoulder, never staying long in either place, but also never looking at anything else. 

“Okay, I know I may not have Olsen’s abs, but it’s not  _ that _ bad,” he said, pretending like he didn’t know what she was really looking at. Kara looked at him with guilty tears in her eyes. He could read what she wanted to say, and he wasn’t going to give her the chance to apologize again, so he said, “So, it turns out that I will actually need help getting a teeshirt on. Any chance you could give me a hand?” 

Kara blinked, then stepped forward. “Of-of course,” she answered in an unsteady voice. She looked around, no doubt for said shirt. “Do you have one in mind?” 

“Just pick one from the drawer,” he said, thankful he hadn’t gotten as far as taking his pants off; this was going to be embarrassing enough without including being pants-less. He sat down on the bed while he waited, his injuries grumbling their discontent as he did so. The medication had taken a lot of the edge off, but it didn’t do anything for the intense spikes of pain that happened if he moved wrong. 

Since he didn’t specify which drawer, it took Kara a few tries to find the right one, but once she did, she pulled one of the shirts on top out, closed it, then came towards him. She fidgeted on her way over, biting her lip nervously. Winn sighed. 

“It’s fine, Kara,” he assured, though he doubted it did any actual good. “I just need your help with getting the shirt on my good side, anyways.” 

Relief washed over her face and she smiled at him, handing the shirt over. She opened her mouth to say something, but then a knock on the door distracted her. “I’ll get it,” she said, her face lighting up at the prospect of food. 

While she did that, Winn did his part in putting the shirt on. He hissed as pain lit up his side with the movement, then clenched his jaw to stifle any further sound that might come out while he waited for the fire to calm before he tried again. 

“Here,” Kara quietly said, reaching out to help him. Not having realized she’d returned, Winn jumped, throatily groaning when it hurt. Kara winced, an apology on her face. “Why don’t you let me do that, too?” She took over for him without waiting for a reply, grabbing the shirt out of his grip, then kneeling in front of him. 

Winn moved back into a less painful position, allowing Kara to dress him like a doll with a confident nervousness that made his heart beat faster.  _ Calm down,  _ he admonished himself before forcing his breathing to return to even. He knew she wouldn’t hurt him, but the intimacy of the whole situation was not something he was comfortable with. 

Once the shirt was finally on, Kara immediately reached for the sling. Winn pouted at her. “Do you seriously expect me to be able to sleep with that thing on?”

“Yep!” she said, slipping it on then securing it for him in one swift movement. “Are you hungry?” she asked, stepping away from him and heading for the kitchen. “I got pot stickers, Kung Pao, Shiitake Beef, but I also ordered some pizza, linguine alfredo, and breadsticks in case you didn’t want Chinese.” 

“You do know, it’s just the two of us, right?” he asked as he grabbed a pair of sweats then slipped his work pants off. “I mean, I know how much you can eat, but that’s still too much food.” 

“Well, yeah, but I figured what you don’t eat tonight, you and James can eat tomorrow.” 

“Urgh, for the last time - I do not need babysitters!” he called as he slipped the sweats on. “You guys have lives, and I promise I won’t do anything but hang out here.” 

“You heard Alex,” she replied, coming back into the bedroom with a newly filled glass of water, the medication bottle and a couple of ice packs. “She doesn’t trust you to do as you’re told, so, for now, you will have someone with you at all times.” She placed the water and medicine on his bedside table while he gingerly got in bed. “We’re your friends, Winn,” she said in a gentle voice, fixing the pillows so they were all piled behind him before handing him the ice packs. “We don’t mind doing this.” 

Winn settled into the pillows, sighing in defeated relief. His eyes closed without his permission, almost refusing to reopen when he told them to. 

Kara smiled down at him. “Get some rest,” she said, tucking him in. “I’ll be right out there if you need anything.” 

“Good night, Kara,” he mumbled, his eye once more closing of their own accord. “Thanks for saving me.”

“Always,” she whispered, and Winn sighed, allowing exhaustion to finally take over with Kara’s loyalty wrapping around him like a weighted blanket as he sunk into dream land. 

_ Finis _

  
  



End file.
